ArmInfo. Indicators of trade turnover between Armenia and Iran are still unsatisfactory. Mohamad Reza Abdul Rahimi, Head of the Main Department for Investment and Budget Planning of the High Council of Free Economic Zones of the Islamic Republic of Iran stated in a conversation with journalists on February 27 at the margins of the 15th session of the Armenian-Iranian intergovernmental commission in Yerevan.
According to him, at the moment no Armenian company has been registered in the economic zones of Iran. Mohamad Reza Abdul Rahimi hopes that, following the signing of the planned Memoranda of Interaction, the process is intensified.
Meanwhile, he noted, there are numerous free trade zones in Iran that welcome investors from neighboring countries, especially the Aras FEZ of strategic importance. Entrepreneurs in these FEZ are in no way limited in their activities - they, among other things, are granted the right to reside and the right to own land and office plots on the territory of the FEZ. Simultaneously, the company operating on the territory of the FEZ, for 20 years, is exempt from taxes, including the payment of income tax. Otherwise, things are in Armenia, where, as Muhammad Reza Abdul Rahimi noted, companies registered in local FEZ can only lease the territory. Abdul Rahimi expressed dissatisfaction with the trade turnover between Iran and Armenia: the import of Armenian goods to Iran is only $ 75 million, the export of Iranian goods to Armenia is $ 165 million, while the total export of Armenia is $ 3.2 billion, and the import of foreign goods in the Islamic Republic of Iran - $ 43 billion. "Thus, the Armenian exports to the Iranian Republic are negligible, and to improve the statistics it is necessary to establish new business contacts and conduct a relevant market research on the Iranian market," said Muhammad Reza Abdul Rahimi.
According to the National Statistical Service of Armenia, in January-December of 2017 the trade turnover between Armenia and Iran reached $ 263.4 million, with an annual growth of 10.1%. In the structure of foreign trade turnover, exports amounted to $ 84.1 million with an increase of 11.8%, and imports increased by 9.3%, reaching $ 179.3 million.